Rachel Reeves told MPs about her plans to mitigate against price rises earlier today (Image: Getty)
A motoring expert has raged at Rachel Reeves following her speech outlining her plans to mitigate against price rises amid the United States and Israel's war against Iran. The Chancellor announced that the Competition and Markets Authority is being given new powers to clamp down on price gouging through an anti-profiteering framework. The average pump price of a liter of unleaded petrol in the UK stood at 144.2p on Monday, up 3.9p week on week and a jump of 12.0p since March 2, shortly after the start of the Middle Eastern crisis.
This is the highest price for unleaded petrol since July 2024. The average price of a liter of diesel stood at 166.9p on Monday, up 8.1p week on week and an increase of 24.7p since March 2, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero figures showed. It is the highest diesel price since March 2023.
Ms Reeves added that the Government's Fuel Finder app would allow motorists to avoid “rip-off prices” by comparing petrol station prices.
READ MORE: 'Rachel Reeves is making UK poorer – while helping US and Norway get rich'
READ MORE: 'Rachel Reeves told to press panic button – you're going to hate what happens'
Howard Cox is the founder of FairFuelUK (Image: Howard Cox)
But Howard Cox, the founder of FairFuelUK, told The Express that he is dissatisfied.
The campaigner said: “Why do we have to wait a month to see how Rachel Reeves plans to cut the cost of filling up for hardworking drivers? The economy, businesses, and motorists are suffering now. We predict that inflation will rise by at least 0.3% due to the recent fuel supply chain rip-offs at the pumps.”
The motoring specialist added that more than 30,000 FairFuelUK supporters have contacted their MPs in the past week to urge them to press the government to cut fuel duty or keep it frozen during this parliament.
“She could remove the immoral VAT added onto this regressive levy and instruct the CMA to launch PumpWatch with teeth,” Mr Cox said.
Mr Cox launched PumpWatch with then-Conservative Energy Secretary Claire Coutinho in 2024.
The idea was to publish daily wholesale price movements for petrol and diesel, as well as other vehicle fuels.
These figures would show in pence, the wholesale changes over 24 hours, seven days and seven weeks.
Mr Cox added: “On the surface, I welcome the Chancellor granting new time-limited powers to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to crack down on price gouging at the pumps. But what does that really mean?
“In the last 10 days, 41.2% said in a FairFuelUK poll of 68,000 road users that they had seen pump prices rise significantly on existing, already paid-for stocks of fuel at their usual forecourts. So, what more evidence do these regulatory bodies need?”
The expert then issued a warning and urged the government to roll out one crucial measure.
Mr Cox said: “We've been here before when the previous Government's Energy Minister, Claire Coutinho, launched FairFuelUK's PumpWatch. But the mistake was making the scheme voluntary for retailers. Surely any regulatory pump-pricing monitoring control must have legislative power and be compulsory and participatory too. So, the devil will be in Labour's detail.
“Dozens of countries have already introduced or announced caps (or equivalent limits/ceilings) on retail fuel prices. I repeat, why are we waiting a month to know what the hell this government plans to do to relieve the cost-of-living crisis? The rest of the world is already helping drivers.
“China and Croatia, along with Greece, Hungary, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, and Thailand, have now introduced price caps! Taiwan absorbs 60% of price hikes through a government mechanism. Germany and Austria limit how often stations can raise prices. France has introduced price ceilings and increased inspections to prevent gouging. Many other countries are using alternatives such as VAT or excise tax cuts (eg, Spain, Portugal, Sweden), subsidies, or stockpiles rather than direct caps.”